Eulogy Of Dying River Novels & Stories

Ryan There’s a river that runs through the Deadlands. The same river that splits Eastonia in two. On the other side, mountains hug the horizon, blurring the view of Tarsian beyond. In the Deadlands, the river is… wide, but still. A large, lumbering stretch of clear water that weaves through the plains. Here, in the Roguelands, in what used to be a city called Twin Rivers, now nothing but a husk of what it was twenty or so years ago when Ryatt and Ella were young, that same river is angry and narrow, full of rapids and rock.

I made my way toward the River direction. Getting to the bank of the river, I sniffed back the tears that rolled down from my eyes. I decided to end my life since no one is interested in me. They're not ready to see me anymore. They're angry at me. I stopped midway as I was about to dive into the river, but I had to stop when I heard a cold voice from behind. Though I couldn't tell who owns the voice, it sounds familiar. "Do you think killing yourself is a solution?"

How sweet it would be right now to feel nothing. This didn’t happen, though. There was no clemency. She was, and always would be, anchored to this delusional planet. To this hurt. Somebody up there, please help us. We’re dying down here. Can’t you see that? Our land is honeycombed with tombs, and it’ll crumble under our feet one day. Soon. I’ll build a bridge from me to you out of corpses. Just promise me you’ll be there when I arrive. You need to pinkie-swear I won’t be alone.

Now that River isn’t here to protect me, I need to do it for myself. If I were able to protect myself before, then maybe… This shouldn’t have happened. Rows of white stones surrounded us, and now, River’s name was included on it. It felt unreal. Until now, my mind was still in denial. “Poor guy. He’s still so young, yet he died because of someone obsessed with the Princess.” “I heard that even his parents weren’t here because they couldn’t deal with the pain. I wonder how hard it must have been for them to lose their heir.”

After all, any living soul that wanted to reach Mournglow River had to forget everything from their past life, and their body in the living world had to die too. In other words, Mournglow River had always been a one-way trip. Some people made it there, but they also died. They drank the Oblivion Draught and forgot everything. But Landon was different. "My lord, we've arrived." The Phantom Patrol stopped and looked toward the west. That river was nothing like the ones in the living world. The water was dark blue—almost black, rolling with thick mist that seemed ready to drag the souls of anyone who got close into its depths.

Lifelong bonds severed by senseless violence. When every canoe has hit the surface, Father and I raise our hands in unison. I’ve presided over funerals before, but none with this many subjects. Nomi sings a hymn of peace as we move like two branches of the same tree. Hand, wrist, turn. The water of the river parts like a hungry mouth and swallows the line of canoes in a single gulp. The ocean will carry them beneath the surface, and they will settle into their final resting places amidst the element that gave them power. May they find their places amongst the stars.

I continued struggling to get an edge and free myself, but I was gradually losing consciousness while sinking to the depths of the river. In a split second, my whole life flashed right in my face. I never imagined I would be dying out here in a small river, in this tiny town, and most importantly, without actualizing my dream of marrying a billionaire. The thought of dying a pauper broke my heart into pieces as I gradually sank to the bottom. I know the river glitters like gold, but it's not lose to the real thing. I prayed earnestly in my heart to the god of riches to give me one more chance to make my dream come true.

It was a place my father died. I was back for HIM. "This is the only river in Midnight groove, it has never run dry even in any season, whether dry or raining it flows," She said. I wondered why she was telling me about the river but she was right! It was the same that year, I had played throwing stones in the river with the other young wolves. It was just exactly the way it was, nothing changed, that infuriated me. I turned to the priestess, she was staring at the river blankly. "Did you grow up here?" She faced me. "In the Midnight groove?" I asked.

His authority and death tone that everyone shouldn’t rub against. “Here you go, Boss.” Quickly lending the keys, he immediately took it and walks towards the parking area. Away from his subordinates and for the entire night. He put the key into the ignition and started the motorbike. The engine roars and he immediately took the road. Fair enough, he took his mask and felt the air on his face and skin. Having that momentarily freedom from the burden of his two lives. He then stops the bike near the bridge where his only memory comes from. The necklace dangles from his neck and the memory of the promise is knocking inside his mind.

Reva calls and is quiet for a long moment on the phone and then says, "Your mother always believed in rivers. She said once that Volana wolves are like water, they find every crack, they get through. She would have loved this name." I hold the phone against my face after the call ends. Outside, the June evening is still doing the long gold thing. Inside, Lyra is singing her grandmother's song, the one she found in my field, the one no one taught her, and somewhere inside me River is reaching outward toward whatever the world is going to offer. Going everywhere. The way water always does.